Optically Clear FDM Printing
3D printers are becoming increasingly common in homes and libraries across the country. With it comes a desire to make something, but little direction about what to make. A large percentage of the US population wears glasses, so a project which allows people to 3D print their own glasses would be bo...
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| Other Authors: | |
| Format: | Thesis |
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Massachusetts Institute of Technology
2022
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| Online Access: | https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/144942 |
| _version_ | 1811095472455024640 |
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| author | Pettit, Leah |
| author2 | Fang, Nicholas Xuanlai |
| author_facet | Fang, Nicholas Xuanlai Pettit, Leah |
| author_sort | Pettit, Leah |
| collection | MIT |
| description | 3D printers are becoming increasingly common in homes and libraries across the country. With it comes a desire to make something, but little direction about what to make. A large percentage of the US population wears glasses, so a project which allows people to 3D print their own glasses would be both meaningful and practical if it can be done using easy-to-learn skills. While there is a single documented example of producing a 3D printed lens with some post-processing, that used SLA printer, which is currently less common, especially amongst individuals. I set out to determine whether this process could be amended for FDM 3D printing or if there is another way to make optically clear lenses with an FDM printer. I discovered that the other traditional smoothing techniques were not sufficient to create a clear surface, but resin coating could result in a fully transparent object. However, further research is needed to determine whether a specific focus can be repeatably created using this method, and it would still require a substantial time investment on the part of the potential user. This makes it a poor early-learning project, but leaves open the potential value to more advanced makers. |
| first_indexed | 2024-09-23T16:17:17Z |
| format | Thesis |
| id | mit-1721.1/144942 |
| institution | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
| last_indexed | 2024-09-23T16:17:17Z |
| publishDate | 2022 |
| publisher | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | mit-1721.1/1449422022-08-30T03:04:16Z Optically Clear FDM Printing Pettit, Leah Fang, Nicholas Xuanlai Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Mechanical Engineering 3D printers are becoming increasingly common in homes and libraries across the country. With it comes a desire to make something, but little direction about what to make. A large percentage of the US population wears glasses, so a project which allows people to 3D print their own glasses would be both meaningful and practical if it can be done using easy-to-learn skills. While there is a single documented example of producing a 3D printed lens with some post-processing, that used SLA printer, which is currently less common, especially amongst individuals. I set out to determine whether this process could be amended for FDM 3D printing or if there is another way to make optically clear lenses with an FDM printer. I discovered that the other traditional smoothing techniques were not sufficient to create a clear surface, but resin coating could result in a fully transparent object. However, further research is needed to determine whether a specific focus can be repeatably created using this method, and it would still require a substantial time investment on the part of the potential user. This makes it a poor early-learning project, but leaves open the potential value to more advanced makers. S.B. 2022-08-29T16:22:32Z 2022-08-29T16:22:32Z 2022-05 2022-06-14T19:35:30.876Z Thesis https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/144942 CC0 - Public Domain Copyright Public Domain https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/ application/pdf Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
| spellingShingle | Pettit, Leah Optically Clear FDM Printing |
| title | Optically Clear FDM Printing |
| title_full | Optically Clear FDM Printing |
| title_fullStr | Optically Clear FDM Printing |
| title_full_unstemmed | Optically Clear FDM Printing |
| title_short | Optically Clear FDM Printing |
| title_sort | optically clear fdm printing |
| url | https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/144942 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT pettitleah opticallyclearfdmprinting |